Prince Arctic
Prince Arctic was a male IceWing prince, the last known animusof the IceWing tribe, father of Darkstalker and Whiteout, and the mate of Foeslayer. He was spoken of in Winter Turning and is part of the reason for the rivalry between the NightWings and IceWings. The IceWings hate the NightWings because they believe that Foeslayer "stole the IceWings' animus powers" (courtesy of Queen Diamond's lie). Arctic dearly loved Foeslayer, although they had many fights, since they both were patriotic about their different tribes. He was on the verge of losing his soul due to animus magic, but was killed by Darkstalker with his magic before he fully lost it. His death also caused the NightWings to flee the Night Kingdom and go into hiding, as they watched him disembowel himself and cut out his tongue after being enchanted by his son. Appearance Arctic's scales were described to be polished white with hints of pale ice-blue although Clearsight describes him as scuffed almost, like he has to roll in snow to return to normal, and his eyes were the color of a clear, cloudless winter sky.1 His scales are also mentioned to be moon-white2 or silvery-white.3 Arctic also wore two earrings: a light blue diamond in his left ear, and a silver narwhal in his right.4 He radiated resentment and cold anger and had an angry voice. Clearsight described him as "a hissing, fanged glacier". Biography Pre-Series Instead of creating his animus gift for the IceWings, as was a custom tradition for an IceWing animus, Arctic chose to enchant an earring to keep his NightWing love, Foeslayer, safe and always the right temperature and then he eloped with her. Queen Diamond refused to accept that Prince Arctic ran away for love, so she lied to the tribe about how Foeslayer wanted the animus power for her tribe and kidnapped Arctic so they could have an animus dragonet. Because Arctic abandoned the IceWings, there were no more IceWing animus dragons in the future and the whole tribe was furious at the NightWings for apparently "stealing their last animus". However, there was no way to take Arctic back because his son Darkstalker had killed him. Because of this misunderstanding, the two tribes still hate each other to this day. Runaway Runaway starts with Foeslayer going into the dome of the 'gift of diplomacy' and Foeslayer finding Arctic instantly, remarking that he seemed to outshine all the dragons in the dome. Later that night, the two sneak away from their rooms together. Darkstalker (Legends) Arctic is first shown in his room at a diplomat's palace, receiving a message from a noble IceWing he can't remember the name of. He had been studying animus gifts of the past, trying to come up with his own unique gift. After a brief and tense conversation, he remembers that her name is Snowflake and that they're engaged. He wasn't enthusiastic about this as he thought she was a boring dragon with no emotions. They make their way to the balcony while having what is described to be an incredibly boring conversation. On the balcony, they see a NightWing admiring the view of the ocean while trying to keep herself warm. Arctic asks Snowflake to leave, then begins a conversation with Foeslayer. He mentions that he and Snowflake were engaged but he forgot who she was, which Foeslayer uses to tease him. The two talk and flirt for a while. Arctic, fully aware that he's breaking almost every IceWing law, enchants a diamond earring to keep Foeslayer warm. He explains the situation and Foeslayer is flabbergasted that he'd break such an important law for her. Arctic is shown years later arguing with Foeslayer about their eggs. Darkstalker "sees" his soul rotting away. Darkstalker, after finding his father suspicious, was able to read his mind, and in his future, he saw blood and death. Even later than that, Arctic is shown discovering Darkstalker's animus powers when Clearsight and Darkstalker are at his house playing with Darkstalker's Talisman. There, Clearsight has visions about Arctic, and unwillingly tells him this prophecy: "Beware your two queens; beware your own power. Your claws will betray you in your final hour." This prophecy turns out to be true, as it is his own talons that disembowel himself. He also is said to be a lot more wary about using animus power after Clearsight speaks the prophecy. He is also mentioned several times later in the book, with brief scenes with him and Darkstalker. During the last part of the book, he appears trying to go to the Ice Kingdom with his daughter, Whiteout, whom he had enchanted to follow him and to speak normally. Because of this, Darkstalker enchanted Arctic to follow and obey his every command. He was later killed publicly after Darkstalker told him to tell the gathered NightWings what he had planned to do. After revealing that he should've killed Darkstalker the moment he hatched, Darkstalker commanded Prince Arctic to cut out his own tongue and then to disembowel himself. Winter Turning Arctic is mentioned by both Winter and Foeslayer. In the Night Kingdom, Winter explains to his friends the reason the IceWings hate NightWings and the legend of Darkstalker: Foeslayer stole Arctic and became his mate to bring animus magic to the NightWing tribe, and then Darkstalker killed Arctic so he couldn't bring it back to the IceWings. But at the end, Foeslayer reveals that this was a lie; she and Arctic had fallen in love and he went with her willingly. Escaping Peril In Escaping Peril, it is revealed that Darkstalker had enchanted Arctic to obey his every command, then instructed him to disembowel himself, instead of murdering the IceWing himself as most believed. Moonwatcher discovers this after reading the enchantment on the scroll, then asking Darkstalker if he made Arctic kill himself, to which he replies yes and begins making excuses. Talons of Power He is mentioned several times throughout, with many dragons asking Darkstalker if it was true he murdered his own father. At one point, Darkstalker even said that even Arctic knew he deserved what he got. Relationships Foeslayer He is shown to love and care about Foeslayer very much, enough to break every rule that his kingdom had set in place for her sake. They are shown to bicker, tease, and flirt quite frequently, though sometimes it escalates into real arguments as shown in Darkstalker's first memory. After Arctic goes a little mad from his animus powers, however, he almost regrets leaving the IceWings for her. However, he still loves her. He cares for both Foeslayer and Whiteout; a little ember of love underneath all that bitterness is what was keeping him rooted. In one of Clearsight's visions, he was crying over a painting of Foeslayer by Whiteout. Darkstalker His exact relationship with his son is unknown, though it definitely was not a positive one. He was disappointed upon Darkstalker's hatching that the dragonet did not resemble him, and thought his name was creepy. It is revealed that he trained his son to use his powers (more like Arctic had such twisted thoughts Darkstalker taught himself to control his powers), but when Arctic tried to bring Whiteout back to the Ice Kingdom it was enough to convince Darkstalker that he was evil and enchanted Arctic to disembowel himself. However, Arctic's behavior was only because he went crazy from using too much of his animus powers. Whiteout Whiteout was Arctic's daughter, and it is unknown if he actually loved her as a daughter or not. It is said in "Darkstalker, Legends" that Arctic preferred her over Darkstalker, most likely because her IceWing genetics were visible, but that he treated her "like she was a necklace he could hang in the corner until he needed her again" and didn't really care about her feelings. It is also shown that Arctic disapproved of her liking of Thoughtful. It is also made clear that Arctic doesn't trust Whiteout's loyalty to him, enchanting an item to make her follow him when he tries to leave the Night Kingdom to return to the Ice Kingdom. Queen Diamond Arctic clearly had quite a bit of resentment against his mother, having pictured making an enchantment to freeze her mouth shut forever. She is shown controlling basically every aspect of his life to keep him in line and do the best for their Kingdom. The strain on their relationship must have escalated quite a bit after Arctic ran off with Foeslayer without her knowing. Snowflake Arctic is shown to find Snowflake quite boring and be very unenthusiastic about marrying her. Upon meeting in the prologue, he completely forgets her name and ditched her at first opportunity. It is hinted that she is about as uninterested in him as he is in her. Clearsight Although Arctic didn't interact with Clearsight much, he seemed to be genuinely concerned when she had visions in his house in front of him and was worried when she told him a prophecy about his future. Enchantments Foeslayer's Protection Earring- A diamond earring of his own that he enchanted to keep Foeslayer warm, safe from harm, and immune to animus spells. Freezing Dagger - A dagger he enchanted so that whenever he would point it in the direction of a dragon, it would freeze them whenever the user says "freeze". To unfreeze them, the user must say "unfreeze". Invisibility Armband - An armband that Arctic enchanted to allow the user to walk through walls and turn invisible when turned clockwise, and then turn the user visible once more when it is turned counterclockwise. If another dragon is touched while the armband is making the user invisible, the dragon being touched will also become invisible. Several Spears - Arctic, during his and Foeslayer's escape from the Ice Kingdom, enchanted several spears to stop the guards from catching them. However, he did not specify how the spears would stop the guards, and the guards were unfortunately and accidentally killed. Shielding Earring - An earring enchanted to keep animus spells from affecting him. 'Whiteout's Necklace '- a necklace enchanted to make Whiteout speak "normally" and want to follow him to the Ice Kingdom. Quotes "It's true, though, our climate is one of our best-guarded secrets." - To Foeslayer, being sarcastic about the cold "Maybe she does have a personality: repressed fury. Or maybe she's as unexcited about this match as I am." - To himself, about Snowflake "Imagine disobeying an order - any order. Where would I even start?" - To himself, when Foeslayer mentions not following orders "The tribe has strict rules. We're only allowed to use our power once in a lifetime." - To Foeslayer after enchanting an earring to keep her warm "I ''do wish I had been a better father. If I were, I would have strangled you the moment you hatched."'' - His last words, to Darkstalker "You aggravating moonhead!" -To Foeslayer in Runaway "Also, we're kind of engaged to be married." -''About Snowflake ''"I was taking my daughter to Queen Diamond. I was going to offer her talons in marriage to whomever Diamond chose, so she could hatch some heirs for the throne who might have animus blood. I was going to live in an ice palace again, sleeping at night like a normal dragon. I was going to find out if Foeslayer is still alive. I was going to offer the IceWings a detailed map of the Night Kingdom and a way to get inside to destroy you all, in exchange for her life. ''-When Darkstalker forcefully made him say what Arctic was planning. "Sounds more like he ''creeps ''through the dark. Like a ''stalker." -About Foeslayer naming Darkstalker Trivia * All animus NightWings were descended from him. * Even though Prince Arctic had no NightWing powers, he unintentionally taught Darkstalker to use his. It is implied that instead of instructing him in how to do so, Darkstalker was so disturbed by his father's thoughts that he taught himself to shut them out. * He is one of the protagonists of Runaway and is one of the first Winglets protagonists to be an IceWing, along with Snowflake. * As of after he fled to the Night Kingdom with Foeslayer, he could be considered as "Ex-Prince Arctic".